Method of patient care device integration with a hospital bed

ABSTRACT

Catheter monitor integration with patient support systems, such as patient beds, and with other healthcare communication systems including hand hygiene systems is provided. A patient bed that transmits bed data and catheter monitor data is disclosed. When catheter tubing is connected to a catheter monitor integrated into a patient bed, the bed automatically implements a falls prevention protocol. A countdown timer pertaining to removal of catheter tubing from a patient is displayed on one or more display devices. Monitoring for caregiver handwashing compliance in connection with use of a catheter monitor or a catheter kit is also provided.

The present application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.15/498,919, filed Apr. 27, 2017, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,016,325, which isa continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 14/829,692, filed Aug. 19,2015, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,642,967, which claims the benefit, under 35U.S.C. § 119(e), of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/081,277, filedNov. 18, 2014, and each of which is hereby incorporated by referenceherein in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

The present disclosure relates to patient support systems such aspatient beds and integration of other equipment with such patientsupport systems as well as with other healthcare communication systemsand hand hygiene systems. More particularly, the present disclosurerelates to integration of a catheter monitor into such systems.

Patient support systems, such as patient beds, used in healthcarefacilities such as hospitals, long term care facilities, nursing homes,and the like, oftentimes support patients that are catheterized. Somesuch patient beds even have attachment points for urine collectionreceptacles such as Foley bags. In more recent times, catheter monitorshave been developed to gather and monitor data regarding urine flow,volume, temperature, and the like. The catheter monitors are oftentimesused with kits that include catheter tubing and other disposables.

Patient beds that connect to a network of a healthcare facility totransmit bed data, bed alarms, and patient nurse calls to the networkare known. For example, patient beds that send data to a nurse callsystem of a healthcare facility are known. Nurse call systems sometimeshave nurse call system servers that are networked to other servers, suchas an admission, discharge, and transfer (ADT) server or an electronicmedical records (EMR) server, of a healthcare facility. Thus, bed datais able to be shared with other servers or systems in a healthcarefacility. When patients are catheterized, it is desirable that theyremain in bed. Thus, it is preferable that bed exit systems of patientbeds are enabled when patients are catheterized. Currently, caregiversneed to remember to manually enable a bed exit system on a patient bedwhen a patient is catheterized.

Based on the foregoing, caregivers may appreciate integration of acatheter monitor with a patient bed so that improved connectivity of thecatheter monitor data to other healthcare information system results andso that improved alarming, caregiver monitoring of catheter monitordata, and improved compliance with healthcare protocols also results.Bed operations and protocols may also benefit from use of data from anintegrated catheter monitor.

SUMMARY

The present application discloses one or more of the features recited inthe appended claims and/or the following features which, alone or in anycombination, may comprise patentable subject matter:

According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a patient bed mayinclude a frame that may be configured to support a patient. A barriermay be coupled to the frame and may be configured to inhibit patientegress from the frame. A catheter monitor may be provided and thebarrier may have a cavity that may be shaped to receive at least aportion of the catheter monitor.

The patient bed may further include bed control circuitry that may becarried by the frame and that may be configured to control at least onefunction of the patient bed. The catheter monitor may have monitorcircuitry that may be in communication with the bed control circuitry.In some embodiments, the patient bed may have at least one graphicaluser interface (GUI) that may be coupled to the bed control circuitry.The GUI may be operable to display bed information that may pertain tothe at least one function of the patient bed and to display monitorinformation that may pertain to at least one function of the cathetermonitor.

In some embodiments, the bed control circuitry may be configured tocommunicate to a network of a healthcare facility bed information thatmay pertain to the at least one function of the patient bed and monitorinformation that may pertain to at least one function of the cathetermonitor. Alternatively or additionally, the bed control circuitry may beconfigured to communicate to a network of a healthcare facility bedidentification (ID) data and catheter monitor identification (ID) data.Further alternatively or additionally, the bed control circuitry may beconfigured to communicate to the network of the healthcare facilitypatient identification (ID) data.

The patient bed may further include an additional piece of patient careequipment and the cavity may be sized to receive at least a portion ofthe additional piece of patient care equipment when the catheter monitoris removed from the cavity. The additional piece of patient careequipment may comprise a pulse oximeter or a sequential compressiondevice, for example.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a patient supportapparatus may include a patient support structure to support a patientand control circuitry to control at least one function of the patientsupport structure. The control circuitry may be operable to implement afalls prevention protocol. A catheter monitor may be coupled to thepatient support structure. The control circuitry may implement the fallsprevention protocol in response to a signal from the catheter monitorindicating at least one of the following: the catheter monitor beingturned on, a catheter tube being attached to the catheter monitor, andurine flowing through the catheter monitor.

In some embodiments, the falls prevention protocol may include an alertbeing generated to indicate that casters of the patient supportapparatus are not braked. Alternatively or additionally, the fallsprevention protocol may include an alert being generated to indicatethat at least one siderail of the patient support apparatus is not in araised position. Further alternatively or additionally, the fallsprevention protocol may include an alert being generated to indicatethat an upper frame of the patient support apparatus is not in a loweredposition relative to a base frame of the patient support apparatus.Still further alternatively or additionally, the falls preventionprotocol may include an alert being generated if a patient positionmonitoring system of the patient support apparatus indicates that thepatient has exited the patient support apparatus or has moved towardexiting the patient support apparatus by a threshold amount.

It is contemplated by this disclosure that the control circuitry maysend a nurse call signal to at least one remote nurse call systemcomputer device in response to a violation of the falls risk protocol.In some embodiments, the control circuitry may send data to at least oneremote computer device of an electronic medical records system and thedata may pertain to operation of the catheter monitor or implementationof the falls risk protocol or both. Alternatively or additionally, thecontrol circuitry may send data to at least one computer device that maysignal an electronic room sign to display information that may pertainto the falls risk protocol.

According to a further aspect of the present disclosure, a patientsupport apparatus may include a patient support structure to support apatient and control circuitry to control at least one function of thepatient support structure. A catheter monitor may be coupled to thepatient support structure and may have monitor circuitry. At least oneof the control circuitry and the monitor circuitry may be operable toimplement a countdown timer. The countdown timer may be activated inresponse to a signal from the catheter monitor indicating at least oneof the following: the catheter monitor being turned on, a catheter tubebeing attached to the catheter monitor, and urine flowing through thecatheter monitor.

Expiration of the countdown timer may indicate, for example, a time atwhich the catheter is to be removed from the patient. In someembodiments, an initial period of time at which the countdown timer isset may be no longer than 24 hours. It is contemplated by thisdisclosure that an alert may be initiated by at least one of the controlcircuitry and the monitor circuitry in response to expiration of thecountdown timer. Alternatively or additionally, an alert may beinitiated by at least one of the control circuitry and the monitorcircuitry a preset amount of time prior to the expiration of thecountdown timer.

In some embodiments, the patient support apparatus may further include agraphical user interface (GUI) carried by the patient support structureand that may be coupled to at least one of the control circuitry and themonitor circuitry. The countdown timer may be displayed on the GUI.

In some embodiments, at least one of the control circuitry and themonitor circuitry may send a nurse call signal to at least one remotenurse call system computer device in response to expiration of thecountdown timer or upon a preset amount of time prior to the expirationof the countdown timer being reached. Alternatively or additionally, atleast one of the control circuitry and the monitor circuitry may senddata to at least one remote computer device of an electronic medicalrecords system that may pertain to the countdown timer. Furtheralternatively or additionally, at least one of the control circuitry andthe monitor circuitry may send data to at least one computer device thatmay signal an electronic room sign to display information pertaining tothe countdown timer. For example, the information pertaining to thecountdown timer may include an amount of time left before expiration ofthe countdown timer may be reached.

According to still another aspect of the present disclosure, a systemmay include a patient bed that may have bed circuitry configured tosense bed data. A catheter monitor may be mounted to the patient bed andmay have monitor circuitry to sense monitor data. At least one of themonitor circuitry and the bed circuitry may be in communication with theother. At least one remote computer device may receive the bed data andthe monitor data that may be transmitted over a common communicationlink from the patient bed.

In some embodiments, the monitor data may include one or more of thefollowing: tube connection data, temperature data, urine volume data,urine flow data, urinalysis data, catheter monitor identification (ID)data, catheter monitor diagnostic data, and catheter monitor alarm data.The monitor data may further include countdown to removal data. Themonitor circuitry may include at least one optical sensor to sense themonitor data.

In some embodiments, the bed data may include one or more of thefollowing: siderail position data, bed height data, mattress inflationdata, bed identification (ID) data, bed alarm data, caster braking data,and bed diagnostic data. The common communication link may comprise awired communication link or a wireless communication link, for example.

It is contemplated by this disclosure that the catheter monitor mayinclude a housing, a module that may carry the monitor circuitry, andtubing that may couple to the module. The module may detachably coupleto the housing such that the module with the monitor circuitry and thetubing may be disposable after use. The system may further include acollection receptacle that may couple to the tubing. The collectionreceptacle also may be disposable after use. The catheter monitor mayinclude interface circuitry that may be carried by the housing. Theinterface circuitry may couple the monitor circuitry with the bedcircuitry when the module is coupled to the housing.

In some embodiments, the patient bed includes a graphical user interface(GUI) that may be coupled to the bed circuitry and coupled to themonitor circuitry. The GUI may be operable to display the bed data andthe monitor data. The patient bed may include a user input either on theGUI or separate from the GUI that may be selected by a caregiver toconfirm the accuracy of at least some of the monitor data.

In some embodiments, the remote computer device also may receive patientdata transmitted over the common communication link from the patientbed. The patient data may include one or more of the following: patientlocation data, patient identification (ID) data, patient vital signsdata, patient weight data, and patient alarm data.

According to yet another aspect of the present disclosure, a system mayinclude a patient bed and a catheter monitor that may be mounted to thepatient bed. The catheter monitor may have a sensor that may senseconnection of catheter tubing thereto. The system may also include ahand hygiene system that a caregiver may use for handwashing and thatmay monitor for handwashing compliance by caregivers. The system mayfurther include a compliance monitoring computer that may, in responseto catheter tubing being connected to the catheter monitor, determinewhether the caregiver attaching the catheter tubing to the cathetermonitor used the hand hygiene system for handwashing less than athreshold amount of time prior to connecting the catheter tubing to thecatheter monitor.

In some embodiments, the system may further include a locating systemthat may determine the location of the caregiver in a healthcarefacility. The locating system may be in communication with the handhygiene system and with the compliance monitoring computer. It iscontemplated by this disclosure that the threshold amount of time may beselectable using the compliance monitoring computer. An alert may begenerated by the compliance monitoring computer if the catheter tubingis connected to the catheter monitor and the caregiver did not use thehand hygiene system within the threshold amount of time prior toconnecting the catheter tubing to the catheter monitor. The alert mayinclude a message displayed on at least one of the following: agraphical user interface (GUI) of the patient bed, a GUI of the cathetermonitor, a room station of a nurse call system, an electronic room sign,a phone display, and a tablet computer display.

According to still a further aspect of the present disclosure, a systemmay include a catheter kit that may, in turn, include catheter tubing.The catheter kit may have a transmitter that may transmit a kit-openedsignal indicating that the kit is being opened or has been opened. Thesystem may include a hand hygiene system that a caregiver may use forhandwashing and that may monitor for handwashing compliance bycaregivers. The system may also include a compliance monitoring computerthat may receive the kit-opened signal and that may determine whetherthe caregiver opening the catheter kit has used the hand hygiene systemfor handwashing within a threshold amount of time prior to or afterreceipt of the kit-opened signal.

In some embodiments, the system further includes a display that maydisplay activities required by a healthcare protocol. The healthcareprotocol may comprise, for example, activities that include one or moreof: wearing a gown, wearing sterile gloves, wearing a mask, draping apatient with a sterile sheet, and use of an antiseptic such aschlorhexidine. The display may be included as part of one or more of thefollowing: a nurse call computer, a room station of nurse call system, aGUI of a patient bed, an electronic room sign, a phone display, and atablet computer display.

It is contemplated by this disclosure that the system may furtherinclude RF transmitters that may be affixed to one or more of the gown,the gloves, the mask, and the drape and may further include RF receiversthat may receive signals from the RF transmitters to determinecompliance with the healthcare protocol. The system may further includea locating system that may determine caregiver location. The locatingsystem may be in communication with the hand hygiene system and with thecompliance monitoring computer.

The compliance monitoring computer may receive caregiver identification(ID) data from the locating system and may determine whether thecaregiver identified by the caregiver ID data has received propertraining to implement the healthcare protocol. In some embodiments, thecompliance monitoring computer may determine that a patient's conditionmeets established criteria for the healthcare protocol based on patientdata received by the compliance monitoring computer.

Alternatively or additionally, the compliance monitoring computer mayreceive caregiver identification (ID) data and caregiver location datafrom the locating system and may confirm that the caregiver has not beenexposed to infectious agents within a threshold amount of time prior toopening the catheter monitoring kit. An alert may be generated by thecompliance monitoring computer if the caregiver has been exposed toinfectious agents within the threshold amount of time. The alert mayinclude a message displayed on at least one of the following: agraphical user interface (GUI) of a patient bed, a GUI of a cathetermonitor, a room station of a nurse call system, an electronic room sign,a phone display, and a tablet computer display.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a system mayinclude a patient bed that may have an RFID reader, a catheter tube, anRFID tag that may be attached to the catheter tube, and a timer that maybegin a timing cycle in response to the RFID reader reading the RFID tagthat may be attached to the catheter tube.

In some embodiments, the system may include metallic foil packaging inwhich the catheter tube and the RFID tag may be contained prior to use.The metallic foil packaging may prevent the RFID reader from reading theRFID tag until after the catheter tube with the RFID tag attachedthereto are removed from the metallic foil packaging.

In some embodiments, the timing cycle may comprise a countdown time andexpiration of the countdown time may indicate a time at which thecatheter tube is to be removed from the patient. It is contemplatedthat, in some embodiments, an initial period of time at which thecountdown time is set may be no longer than 24 hours. An alert may beinitiated in response to expiration of the countdown time. Alternativelyor additionally, an alert may be initiated a preset amount of time priorto the expiration of the countdown time.

In some embodiments, the patient bed may include a graphical userinterface (GUI) carried and the countdown time may be displayed on theGUI. A nurse call signal may be sent to at least one remote nurse callsystem computer device in response to expiration of the countdown timeor upon a preset amount of time prior to the expiration of the countdowntime being reached. In some embodiments, the patient bed may send datato at least one remote computer device of an electronic medical recordssystem pertaining to the countdown time. Alternatively or additionally,the patient bed may send data to at least one computer device that maysignal an electronic room sign to display information pertaining to thecountdown time. For example, the information pertaining to the countdowntime may include an amount of time left before expiration of thecountdown time is reached.

According to still another aspect of the present disclosure, a systemmay include a patient bed that may have an RFID reader, a catheter tube,an RFID tag that may be attached to the catheter tube, and a graphicaluser interface (GUI). In response to the RFID reader reading the RFIDtag attached to the catheter tube, a prompt may be displayed on the GUIfor an electronic input to be entered by a caregiver. The system mayhave a timer that may begin a timing cycle in response to entry of theelectronic input by the caregiver on the GUI.

In some embodiments, the system may further include metallic foilpackaging in which the catheter and the RFID tag may be contained priorto use. The metallic foil packaging may prevent the RFID reader fromreading the RFID tag until after the catheter tubing with the RFID tagattached thereto are removed from the metallic foil packaging.

According to this disclosure, the GUI may be integrated into the patientbed or may be included as part of a room station of a nurse call systemor may be included as part of a handheld controller such as handheldpendant controller of the patient bed. In some embodiments, the timingcycle is selectable by a caregiver. The timing cycle may indicate whenthe catheter tube should be checked, changed, or removed from a patient.The timing cycle may have a default value that may depend upon the typeof the catheter and/or the type of the patient with which the catheteris used. The electronic input may comprise an electronic signature of acaregiver, a selection of an icon, or an entry of a code.

In some embodiments, the systems contemplated herein may further includea receptacle that may couple to the catheter tube to receive liquid fromthe catheter tube and a receptacle RFID tag. The RFID reader may readthe receptacle RFID tag such that a time-stamp may be created inresponse to the receptacle being attached to or detached from thecatheter tubing. In some embodiments, the timer accounts for time thatthe catheter tube was in use with a patient prior to the RFID reader ofthe patient bed reading the RFID tag. For example, the catheter may havebeen inserted into a patient during surgery and a time of insertion maybe stored in the patient's electronic medical record (EMR) of an EMRsystem. The timer accounts for the time the catheter was in use prior tothe RFID reader reading the RFID tag based on information received fromthe EMR system.

Additional features, which alone or in combination with any otherfeature(s), such as those listed above and/or those listed in theclaims, may comprise patentable subject matter and will become apparentto those skilled in the art upon consideration of the following detaileddescription of various embodiments exemplifying the best mode ofcarrying out the embodiments as presently perceived.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The detailed description particularly refers to the accompanying figuresin which:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a catheter monitor integrated into asiderail of a patient bed and control circuitry of the patient bed beingcoupled to a network of a healthcare facility;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing additional details of the cathetermonitor circuitry and the bed circuitry and the interconnection betweenthe monitor circuitry and the bed circuitry;

FIG. 3 is a diagrammatic view showing a cavity formed in the siderail ofthe patient bed being sized to receive the catheter monitor and sized toreceive other types of patient care equipment as well; and

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a patient bed having a radiofrequency identification (RFID) reader to read an RFID tag attached tocatheter tubing that has been removed from metallic foil packaging thatblocks the ability of readers to read the tag until removal.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

According to the present disclosure, a system 10 includes a patient bed11 that couples to a network 12 of a healthcare facility as showndiagrammatically in FIG. 1. In the illustrative example, network 12includes a number of other systems each having an associated server.These other systems of network 12 are shown diagrammatically in FIG. 1and, in the illustrative example, include a nurse call server 14 whichis communicatively coupled to a master station 16, a number of graphicalroom stations 18, and a status board 19 (aka an electronic white board);a room signage server 20 which is communicatively coupled to anelectronic room sign 22; a voice over Internet protocol (VOIP) server 24which is communicatively coupled to one or more standard telephones 26,one or more wireless telephone handsets 28, one or more smart phones 30and the like; an electronic medical records (EMR) server 32 which iscommunicatively coupled to one or more EMR computer devices 34; a realtime locating system (RTLS) server 36 which is communicatively coupledto a number of RTLS receivers or transceivers 38 which, in turn,communicate with location tags or badges 40 that are worn or carried bycaregivers; a hand hygiene server 42 which are communicatively coupledto one or more handwashing agents dispensers 44; and an admission,discharge, and transfer (ADT) server 46 which is coupled to one or moreADT computer devices. One or more other servers 50 and associatedcomputer devices 52 are illustrated generically in FIG. 1 as being partof network 12 of system 10 and are intended to represent all otherservers and computer devices included in any given network of ahealthcare facility.

It will be appreciated that network 12 of FIG. 1 and the variouscomputer devices 14-52 are a rudimentary depiction of a network of ahealthcare facility and that actual networks have many more hardwarecomponents than depicted. For additional details of some hardware of anetwork of a healthcare facility, including details of nurse callsystems, room signage systems, hand hygiene systems, and RTLS systems,see the following U.S. Patents and Patent Applications, each of which ishereby expressly incorporated herein by reference to the extent notinconsistent with the present disclosure which shall control as to anyinconsistencies: U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,561,412; 5,699,038; 5,838,223;6,462,656; 6,539,393; 6,727,818; 6,972,683; 7,092,376; 7,242,306;7,248,933; 7,319,386; 7,734,476; 7,907,053; 8,046,625; 8,169,304;8,384,526; and 8,598,995; and U.S. Patent Application Publication No.2014/0244298.

A catheter monitor 60 is coupled to bed 11 as illustrateddiagrammatically in FIG. 1. Catheter monitor 60 is coupled to a patientvia a first segment of catheter tubing 62 and is coupled to a fluidcollection receptacle 64 via a second segment of catheter tubing 66.Thus, urine from the patient flows through tubing 62, 66 and monitor 60to receptacle 64 for collection. Monitor 60 gathers data regarding theurine flow, volume, etc. and provides that data to control circuitry 68of bed 11. Control circuitry 68 also receives bed data from varioussensors and components of bed 11 as is known in the art. For examples ofvarious types of bed data associated with some embodiments of bed 11,see U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2012/0316892 which is herebyexpressly incorporated by reference herein to the extent notinconsistent with the present disclosure which shall control as to anyinconsistencies.

Bed 11 includes a graphical user interface (GUI) 70, such as atouchscreen display, that is electrically coupled to control circuitry68 of bed 11 and that displays bed data. According to this disclosure,GUI 70 also displays data from catheter monitor 60 in some embodiments.GUI is configured to accept user inputs to control functions of bed 11and, in some embodiments, to control functions of catheter monitor 60.Control circuitry 68 of bed 11 is configured to send bed data andmonitor data to network 12 over a common communication link 72 as showndiagrammatically in FIG. 1. In some embodiments, communication link 72comprises a wired link such as, for example, a data cable like the37-pin nurse call cables used in connection with some prior art patientbeds available from Hill-Rom Company, Inc. In other embodiments,communication link 72 comprises a wireless link such as those shown anddescribed for example in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,399,205 and 7,852,208 and inU.S. application Ser. No. 14/487,279, filed Sep. 16, 2014 and titled“Bed/Room/Patient Association Systems and Methods,” each of which ishereby expressly incorporated by reference herein to the extent notinconsistent with the present disclosure which shall control as to anyinconsistencies.

According to this disclosure, the various devices of network 12 havingdisplays are able to display data from catheter monitor 60 astransmitted to network 12 from bed 11 via link 72. Thus, cathetermonitor data is displayed on master station 16, room stations 18, andstatus board 19 of a nurse call system in some embodiments.Alternatively or additionally, catheter monitor data is displayed onelectronic room sign 22 of a room signage system. Further alternativelyor additionally, catheter monitor data is displayed on EMR computerdevice 34 and/or on the display screens of phone 26, handset 28, orphone 30. Tablet computers are an example of another computer device onwhich catheter monitor data is displayed according to this disclosure.For a discussion of interfacing a tablet computer with a patient bed viaa network, see U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2014/0297327which is hereby expressly incorporated by reference herein to the extentnot inconsistent with the present disclosure which shall control as toany inconsistencies.

Throughout FIGS. 1 and 2, double headed arrows are used to denotecommunication links between various components or devices. This isintended to convey the fact that the communication link is abidirectional communication link in some embodiments. However, that isnot to say that, in other embodiments, only a one-way communication isnot suitable for any one or more of the illustrative communicationlinks. Accordingly, bidirectional and one-way communication links arecontemplated by this disclosure for all communication links. Forexample, in some embodiments, catheter monitor 60 sends data tocircuitry 68 of bed 11, but does not receive any data from circuitry 68of bed 11. As another example, in some embodiments, tags 40 transmitsignals to transceivers 38 but do not receive any signals fromtransceivers 38.

Referring now to FIG. 2, additional details of catheter monitor 60 andbed 11 are shown diagrammatically. In the illustrative example, cathetermonitor 60 includes control circuitry 74, a GUI 76, and a power & dataport 78. Port 78 couples to a power & data port 80 of bed 11 whencatheter monitor 60 is coupled to bed 11. Port 80 of bed is coupled tocircuitry 68 of bed 11. Thus, catheter monitor data from circuitry 74 iscommunicated to circuitry 68 of bed 11 via ports 78, 80. GUI 76 ofcatheter monitor 60 displays monitor data and, in some embodiments, alsodisplays bed data. Thus, in such embodiments, GUI 70 of bed 11 can beomitted if desired.

Catheter monitor 60 also includes a connection sensor 82, a temperaturesensor 84, a volume sensor 86, a flow sensor 88, and urinalysiscircuitry 90. Sensor 82 senses whether tubing 62 is attached to cathetermonitor 60 or, more particularly, whether an end of tubing 62 isinserted into a port 92 of a housing of monitor 60. Sensors 84, 86, 88sense the various aspects of the urine flowing into tubing 62, thenthrough internal tubing 94, and then into tubing 66 that their nameimplies. Thus, temperature, volume, and flow rate of the urine throughmonitor 60 is among the data collected by circuitry 74 and transmittedto circuitry 68 of bed 11 and then on to network 12 and the devicesassociated therewith. In some embodiments, one or more of sensors 82,84, 86, 88 comprise an optical sensor.

Referring to FIG. 3, it is contemplated by this disclosure that asiderail 96 of bed 11 has a socket or cavity 98 that is shaped toreceive at least a portion of monitor 60 therein. In the illustrativeexample, port 80 of bed 11 is a male component that projects from a backwall surface 100 of siderail 96 for receipt by a female receptacle ofmonitor 60 to mate with port 78. Surface 100 cooperates with a pair ofside surfaces 102 and a bottom surface 104 of siderail 96 to definecavity 98. However, this is simply one example of a cavity or socketthat is suitable for receiving a portion of a catheter monitor accordingto this disclosure. In the illustrative example, only about half ofmonitor 60 fits into cavity 98 and the other half of monitor 60 projectsbeyond a main outer surface 106 of siderail 96. This arrangement permitstubing 66 to extend downwardly from the bottom of monitor 60 withoutkinking or obstruction from the siderail 96.

It is contemplated by this disclosure that other patient care devices,such as a pulse oximeter 108 or a sequential compression device (SCD)110, are sized for receipt in cavity 98 of siderail 96 in lieu ofcatheter monitor 60 as suggested in FIG. 3 by the slightly curved arrowsleading from the back of each of these devices and pointing towardcavity 98. Thus, a number of devices are coupleable to bed 11 to providedata to circuitry 68 of bed 11 and then, ultimately, to network 12 viacommunication link 72. Pulse oximeter 108 has a port 78′ and SCD 110 hasa port 78″ that are configured to mate with port 80 to allow for thedata and power transfer.

In some embodiments, bed 11 has cavities 98 provided in its othersiderails (e.g., beds typically have four siderails) so that multipledifferent patient care devices can be coupled to bed 11 at the same timeand provide data to circuitry 68 of bed 11 and to receive power from bed11. Thus, monitor 60 may be attached to one of the siderails of bed 11,pulse oximeter 108 may be attached to another of the siderails of bed11, SCD 110 may be attached to still another of the siderails of bed 11,and yet another device such as a vital signs monitor (e.g., heart ratemonitor, respiration rate monitor, blood pressure monitor, etc.), may becoupled to the remaining siderail of bed 11. It is also within the scopeof this disclosure to provide one or more cavities similar to cavity 98in a headboard 112 and/or a footboard 114 to accommodate coupling ofeven more patient care devices to bed 11. Siderails, headboards, andfootboards are sometimes referred to generically as barriers.

In some embodiments, a latch or other retention mechanism such as one ormore snap fingers, ribs, or straps is provided on siderail 96 to helpretain catheter monitor 60 and devices 108, 110 in cavity 98.Alternatively, the latch or other retention mechanism is provided on thecatheter monitor 60 and devices 108, 110. In some embodiments, cavity 98is omitted and a bracket, a hook, a strap, a magnet, hook-and-looppatches, or some other coupler is used to couple catheter monitor 60 anddevices 108, 110 to siderail 96 or to other portions of bed 11 asdesired. It is contemplated by this disclosure that ports 78, 80 areuniversal serial bus (USB) ports in some embodiments. It is alsocontemplated that control circuitry 74 of catheter monitor 60 resides onbed 11 in some embodiments. For example, circuitry 68 of bed 11 includesthe functionality of circuitry 74 in some embodiments. In some suchembodiments, catheter monitor 60 is a disposable cartridge or modulethat contains one or more of sensors 82, 84, 86, 88 and/or urinalysiscircuitry 90, with conductors leading to port 78, but otherwise does notcontain additional circuitry. Thus, the processing of the sensor dataand urinalysis data is done by circuitry 68 of bed 11.

Referring once again to FIG. 2, bed 11 includes a brake sensor 116 tosense whether casters 118 are braked or released, siderail positionsensors 120 to sense whether respective siderails 96 are in raisedpositions or lowered positions, and a low position sensor 122 to sensewhether an upper frame 124 of bed 11 is in a lowered position relativeto a base frame 126 of bed 11. Each of sensors 116, 120, 122 is coupledto circuitry 68. Bed 11 also includes a bed exit and/or patient positionmonitoring (ppm) system 128 coupled to circuitry 68. In someembodiments, bed exit/ppm system 128 of bed 11 includes load cells thatare also used to measure a weight of the patient that is present on bed11. See U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,208,250; 6,438,776; 6,924,441 and 7,253,366which are hereby incorporated by reference herein to the extent notinconsistent with the present disclosure which shall control as to anyinconsistencies for examples of weigh scale systems of patient beds.

Bed 11 also includes a mattress 130 and pneumatic system 132 which iscoupled to circuitry 68 as shown diagrammatically in FIG. 2. Pneumaticsystem 132 includes the various components such as one or more pressuresources (e.g. blower, compressor, or pump), manifolds, valves, pressuresensors, and the like to control the inflation of air bladders or cellsof mattress 130. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art thatpneumatic systems and control circuitry of patient beds are complex innature and that these are shown in the present disclosure in asimplified rudimentary manner. However, additional details of oneexample of such a pneumatic system and control circuitry for a patientbed can be found in SERVICE MANUAL, Progressa™ Bed, From Hill-Rom, ©2013, which is hereby incorporated by reference herein to the extent notinconsistent with the present disclosure which shall control as to anyinconsistencies. Finally, bed 11 includes a communication port or module134 such as a cable connector or a wireless transceiver, for example.Port or module 134 forms a part of the communication link 72 in someembodiments.

According to an aspect of this disclosure, identification data is amongthe data transmitted from circuitry 68 of bed 11 to network 12. Thus,bed ID data, catheter ID data, other device ID data (e.g., from pulseoximeter 108 and/or SCD 110) and patient ID data is among the datatransmitted from bed 11 to network 12. Bed ID data is typically storedin the memory of circuitry 68 of bed 11 although, in some embodiments,bed 11 may have a separate ID tag affixed thereto for transmission ofbed ID. Catheter monitor ID is transmitted from monitor 60 to bed 11along with its other data. As to patient data, in some embodiments, bed11 includes a reader, such an RFID reader to read a signal transmittedfrom an RFID tag (e.g., included in a wristband) worn by the patient.One or more of the patents and patent applications already incorporatedby reference herein include disclosures concerning beds that receivepatient ID data. See also U.S. Provisional Patent Application No.62/073,098, filed Oct. 31, 2014 and titled “Equipment, Dressing andGarment Wireless Connectivity to a Patient Bed,” which is herebyexpressly incorporated by reference herein to the extent notinconsistent with the present disclosure which shall control as to anyinconsistencies. Thus, by having the ID data of the patient and thevarious associated devices, including catheter monitor 60, nurse callserver 14, room signage server, and EMR server 32 are able to store anddisplay for each patient, the associated bed data, device data, andcatheter monitor data.

Other types of data included among the bed data and catheter monitordata include alarm data and diagnostic data. For example, if one oftubes 62 or 66 become disconnected from catheter monitor 60 a tubedisconnection alarm is generated by circuitry 74 in some embodiments.Other circuitry faults such a watchdog timer timing out or a shortcircuit being detected or other circuitry damage being detected are alsoexamples of type of alarms that may be generated by circuitry 68 orcircuitry 74 as appropriate.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a fallsprevention protocol is implemented by circuitry 68 of bed 12automatically based on data received from catheter monitor 60. Forexample, control circuitry 68 may implement the falls preventionprotocol in response to a signal from the catheter monitor 60 indicatingat least one of the following: the catheter monitor 60 being turned on,a catheter tube 62 or 66 being attached to the catheter monitor, andurine flowing through the catheter monitor 60. It will be appreciatedthat a catheterized patient is considered a falls risk patient and thatthey should not exit bed 11 while catheterized.

The falls prevention protocol (aka falls risk protocol) includes analert being generated by bed 12, or in some embodiments, by server 14,to indicate one or more of the following conditions of bed 11: casters118 of bed 11 are not braked; at least one siderail 96 of bed 11 is notin a raised position; upper frame 124 of bed 11 is not in a loweredposition relative to base frame 126 of the patient support apparatus.The associated sensors 116, 120, 122 provide the signals to circuitry 68that permit these determinations to be made. The falls preventionprotocol also includes an alert being generated if bed exit/ppm system128 of bed 11 indicates that the patient has exited bed 11 or has movedtoward exiting bed 11 by a threshold amount.

In some embodiments, control circuitry 68 sends a nurse call signal toserver 14 or master station 16 in response to a violation of the fallsrisk protocol. In some embodiments, control circuitry 68 sends data toEMR server 32 pertaining to operation of the catheter monitor orimplementation of the falls risk protocol or both. Furthermore, controlcircuitry 68 sends data to server 20 which signals electronic room sign22 to display information that may pertain to the falls risk protocol.In the illustrative example, electronic room sign 22 includes the text“FALLS RISK PROTOCOL—ACTIVE.”

According to a further aspect of the present disclosure, either controlcircuitry 68 of bed 11 or control circuitry 74 of monitor 60 or both isoperable to implement a countdown timer to indicate an amount of timebefore catheter tubing 62 should be removed from the patient (referredto herein as “countdown to removal”). In some embodiments, the countdowntimer is activated in response to a signal from catheter monitor 60indicating at least one of the following: the catheter monitor 60 beingturned on, a catheter tube 62 or 66 being attached to the cathetermonitor, and urine flowing through the catheter monitor 60.

In some embodiments, an initial period of time at which the countdowntimer is set may be no longer than 24 hours. It is contemplated by thisdisclosure that an alert may be initiated by control circuitry 68 ormonitor circuitry 74 in response to expiration of the countdown timer.Alternatively or additionally, an alert may be initiated by controlcircuitry 68 or circuitry 74 a preset amount of time prior to theexpiration of the countdown timer. It is contemplated by this disclosurethat the countdown timer may be displayed on one or more of GUI 70, GUI76, room stations 18, master station 16, status board 19, electronicroom sign 22, phones 26, 28, 30, and/or computer devices 34, 48, 52 viathe associated servers 14, 20, 24, etc. In the illustrative example,electronic room sign 22 includes the text “COUNTDOWN TO REMOVAL—00:37.”In some embodiments, circuitry 68 or circuitry 74 sends a nurse callsignal to nurse call server 14 or master station 16 in response toexpiration of the countdown timer or upon a preset amount of time priorto the expiration of the countdown timer being reached.

As alluded to above, catheter monitor 60 includes a housing and tubing62, 66 couples to this housing. In some embodiments, a module carriessome of the monitor circuitry and tubing 62, 66 couples to the module.For example, such a module includes internal tubing 94, sensors 82, 84,86, 88, and urinalysis circuitry 90 in some embodiments. The moduledetachably couples to the housing such that the module with itsassociated monitor circuitry and the tubing 62, 66 are disposable afteruse. The collection receptacle 64 is also disposable after use. Thus,circuitry 74 of catheter monitor 60 serves as interface circuitry thatis carried by the housing on a permanent basis. The interface circuitry74 then interconnects the monitor circuitry with the bed circuitry 68when the module is coupled to the housing of the catheter monitor 60. Insome embodiments, bed 11 includes a user input either on the GUI 70 orseparate from the GUI 70 that may be selected by a caregiver to confirmthe accuracy of at least some of the monitor data. By selecting thisparticular user input, monitor data is sent to EMR server 32, forexample, with a “confirmed reading” message being included for storagealong with the data.

According to yet another aspect of the present disclosure, one or moreof servers 14, 32, 42, 50 checks to determine if a caregiver has washedtheir hands within a threshold amount of time of connecting cathetertubing 62 to the patient. Under such circumstances, the server doing thechecking is considered to be a “compliance monitoring computer”according to this disclosure. For example, when sensor 82 of cathetermonitor 60 senses connection of catheter tubing 62 to port 92, it isassumed that the tubing 62 was connected or will be connected to thepatient a very short time period thereafter or therebefore. Thecompliance monitoring computer communicates with server 42, or if server42 is the compliance monitoring computer, checks its own databases, todetermine when the caregiver last washed his or her hands using one ofdispensers 44. In this regard, the identity of the caregiver isdetermined based on the tag 40 worn by the caregiver being sensed bytransceiver 38 in the same room as catheter monitor 60.

The compliance monitoring computer determines whether the caregiverattaching the catheter tubing 62 to the catheter monitor 60 used thehand hygiene system dispenser 44 for handwashing less than a thresholdamount of time prior to connecting the catheter tubing 62 to thecatheter monitor 60. In some embodiments, the threshold amount of timefor handwashing may be selectable using the compliance monitoringcomputer. An alert is generated by the compliance monitoring computer ifthe catheter tubing 62 is connected to the catheter monitor 60 and thecaregiver did not use one of the hand hygiene system dispensers 44within the threshold amount of time prior to connecting the cathetertubing 62 to the catheter monitor 60. The alert may include a messagedisplayed one or more of the following: GUI 70, GUI 74, one or more roomstations 18, master station 16, status board 19, electronic room sign22, a display of one of phones 26, 28, 30, and a tablet computerdisplay.

By monitoring for compliance with handwashing protocols in connectionwith use of catheter monitor 60, it is contemplated that the number ofincidents of catheter-associated urinary tract infection (CAUTI) will bedecreased in a healthcare environment. Typically, a catheter is removedat least 24 hours after insertion. In some instances, however,caregivers may affirmatively decide to continue the use of the catheter.According to some embodiments, therefore, a user input is provided onbed 11 or catheter monitor 60 for selection by a caregiver toaffirmatively indicate that the catheter should continue to be usedafter the countdown to removal time period expires. Selection of theuser input resets the countdown timer either to the initial countdownperiod or to some other programmed time period that is eitherpreprogrammed to a default period or selected by a user. The user inputcomprises a button or icon on GUI 70 or GUI 76 in some embodiments.Fields for setting the countdown time period and reset time period alsoare provided on GUI 70 or GUI 76 in some embodiments.

Bed 11 or catheter monitor 60 of system 10, therefore, uses arecognizable event such as connection of tubing 62 to catheter monitor60 for triggering a CAUTI protocol including initiating a 24 hourcountdown timer, communicating status relative to the countdown, andcreating notifications that the protocol has not been followed (e.g.,tubing 62 has not been removed from the patient in a timely manner orre-authorized for continued use). In some embodiments, EMR server 32 orsome other server documents (e.g., collects and stores) the informationrelating to compliance with the CAUTI protocol.

As mentioned above, tubing 62, 66 and, in some embodiments, anadditional module, is included as part of a catheter kit. It iscontemplated by this disclosure that, in some embodiments, the catheterkit has a transmitter that transmits a wireless kit-opened signalindicating that the kit is being opened or has been opened. A receiverof network 12, such as one of receivers 38, receives the kit-openedsignal and forwards it on to the compliance monitoring computer. Thecompliance monitoring computer, after receiving the kit-opened signal,determines whether the caregiver opening the catheter kit has used oneof the hand hygiene system dispensers 44 for handwashing within athreshold amount of time prior to or after receipt of the kit-openedsignal. The RTLS system 36, 38, 40 is used for determining the caregiverwho has opened the kit.

According to this disclosure, one or more of the various displays 16,18, 19, 22, 70, 74 of system 10 display activities required by ahealthcare protocol. The healthcare protocol may comprise, for example,activities that include one or more of: wearing a gown, wearing sterilegloves, wearing a mask, draping a patient with a sterile sheet, and useof an antiseptic such as chlorhexidine. Alternatively or additionallythe display may be included as part of one or more of phones 26, 28, 30and/or a tablet computer display. In some embodiments, system 10includes RF transmitters that are affixed to one or more of the gown,the gloves, the mask, and the drape. System 10 further includes RFreceivers that receive signals from the RF transmitters to determinecompliance with the healthcare protocol.

The compliance monitoring computer receives caregiver identification(ID) data from the locating system 36, 38, 40 and determines whether thecaregiver identified by the caregiver ID data has received propertraining to implement the healthcare protocol. In some embodiments, thecompliance monitoring computer determines that a patient's conditionmeets established criteria for the healthcare protocol based on patientdata received by the compliance monitoring computer.

Alternatively or additionally, the compliance monitoring computer mayreceive caregiver identification (ID) data and caregiver location datafrom the locating system 36, 38, 40 and may confirm that the caregiverhas not been exposed to infectious agents within a threshold amount oftime prior to opening the catheter monitoring kit. An alert is generatedby the compliance monitoring computer if the caregiver has been exposedto infectious agents within the threshold amount of time. The alertincludes a message displayed on at least one of the following: GUI 70,GUI 74, master station 16, one or more of room stations 18, a statusboard 19, an electronic room sign 22, a phone display of one or more ofphones 26, 28, 30, a tablet computer display, or a display of one ormore of computer devices 34, 48, 52.

Based on the foregoing, it should be appreciated that, in someembodiments, catheter monitor 60 contains all components necessary toperform urine assessment (e.g., optical sensor and processor to computevolume and flow of urine); to collect, store, and display data; and alsoincludes the user controls (e.g., GUI 76) for providing inputs tocircuitry 74. The urine from the patient flows through catheter monitor60 and into collection receptacle 64 via tubing 62, 66. In someembodiments, catheter tubing 62 includes a temperature sensor in theportion that is inserted into the patient and is used to measure thepatient's core temperature. In some such embodiments, an electricalconductor is embedded in tubing 62. Bed 11 provides a physical mountinglocation for monitor 60 and provides power and data connectivity formonitor 60.

In some embodiments, attachment of the sensor module or cartridgediscussed above to the rest of catheter monitor 60 is used as thetrigger to assess handwashing compliance monitoring, to begin thecountdown to removal timer or to initiate the falls prevention protocol.A switch is used to sense the attachment of the cartridge or tubing 62,66 in some embodiments. Thus, catheter monitor 60 senses an event, suchas connection of tubing or connection of sensor cartridge, andautomatically communicates data about the occurrence of the event to bed11 for ultimate communication to network 12. In some embodiments, bed 11sends patient ID with catheter start time and one or more of servers 14,20, 32, 50 implement the countdown to removal protocol and communicatecountdown timer information to bed 11 for display on GUI 70, to one ormore of wireless communication devices 38, 30 for display, to statusboard 19 for display, or to other devices for display, such as devices16, 18, 34, 48, 52. Alternatively or additionally, the event sensed bycatheter monitor triggers an infection prevention protocol andinformation about the protocol is displayed on the various devices ofsystem 10.

By integrating catheter monitor 60 with bed 11, circuitry 74 of monitor60 has access to data stored in circuitry 68 of bed 11, such as locationID data, patient ID data, vital signs data, bed status data, patientweight and other data pertaining to characteristics of the careenvironment. Furthermore, monitor 60 has access to the communicationcapabilities of bed 11 such as RF, other wireless (e.g., IR orultrasound or wideband), barcode scanning, near field communicationtechnology, etc., to the extent that bed 11 is equipped with suchtechnologies.

Referring now to FIG. 4, bed 11 includes a radio frequencyidentification (RFID) reader 140 coupled to circuitry 68 (showndiagrammatically in FIG. 4 in phantom). RFID reader 140 reads an RFIDtag 142 that is attached to catheter tubing 66. Prior to use, thecatheter tubing 66 having RFID tag 142 is removed from metallic foilpackaging 144 as indicated by arrow 146 in FIG. 4. Prior to removal, themetallic foil packaging 144 blocks RFID tag 142 from being read by RFIDreader 140, or really, any RFID reader for that matter. By having RFIDreader 140 integrated into bed 11, a separate hand held RFID scannerdoes not need to be used to read tag 142. Furthermore, a cathetermonitor 60 of the type discussed above does not need to be used inconnection with the FIG. 4 embodiment.

In some embodiments contemplated by this disclosure, RFID reader 140reads other RFID tags that are in proximity to bed 11 as well as readingtag 142. For example, RFID reader 140 is able to read RFID tags includedin patient wrist bands; garments such as compression sleeves, sequentialcompression sleeves, vests or wraps of high frequency chest walloscillation systems, red socks to indicate that a patient is a fallsrisk, and patient gowns; wound dressings; and other equipment used forpatient care such as intravenous (IV) pumps, sequential therapy pumps,therapy devices such as passive motion machines, physiologicalmonitoring devices, ventilation equipment, and the like. In this regard,see U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/073,098, filed Oct. 31,2014, and titled “EQUIPMENT, DRESSING AND GARMENT WIRELESS CONNECTIVITYTO A PATIENT BED.”

Still referring to FIG. 4, the ID information read by reader 140 fromtag 142, as well as any other ID information read by reader 140, istransmitted from bed 11 to RTLS server 36 via receiver 38 and/or istransmitted from bed 11 to nurse call system server 14 via room station18. Such transmissions from bed 11 to receiver 38 and/or room station 18are made via communication port 134 (see FIG. 2) in some embodiments. Insome embodiments, a separate tag 40 on bed 11 sends its ID to receiver38 which, in turn, sends the tag ID and a receiver ID to RTLS server 36.The RTLS server 36 and/or nurse call server 18 associates the cathetertubing ID from tag 142 with one or more of the ID's of bed 11 (or tag 40coupled thereto), the patient, the room in which bed 11 is located, andthe caregiver assigned to the patient.

The catheter tubing ID and one or more of the other ID's are also storedin the patient's electronic medical record of EMR server 32 in someembodiments. In some embodiments, bed 11 receives a room ID fromcommunication device 38 which serves as a transmitter 38 or transceiver38 in such embodiments and then bed 11 re-transmits the room ID alongwith other bed data and ID's, including the catheter tubing ID, from theassociated communication port 134 (see FIG. 2) of bed 11 to room station18 and hence to Nurse Call System 14. Nurse Call System 14, in turn,provides the ID data to RTLS server 36 in some embodiments.

In response to reader 140 receiving the transmission from tag 142 ofcatheter tubing 66, a timer is started automatically to monitor how longthe catheter has been in use. Alternatively, in response to reader 140receiving the transmission from tag 142 of catheter tubing 66, acaregiver is prompted on a display, such as GUI 70 of bed and/or thedisplay of room station 18 and/or the display of a handheld pendantcontroller 148 of bed 11, to enter an electronic signature or other typeof user input (e.g., selection of a particular icon or button, entry ofa code, etc.) and then the timer is started in response to receipt ofthe electronic signature of the caregiver or the other type of userinput serving as the prompt on GUI 70. If desired, the caregiver waitsuntil the catheter is inserted into the patient to enter the electronicsignature or other prompted input to thereby start the timer. Such atimer is included in room station 18 in some embodiments, is included aspart of control circuitry 68 in some embodiments, and/or is included incircuitry of handheld pendant controller 148 in some embodiments.Regardless of its location, the timer is a countdown timer in someembodiments that counts down by a predetermined amount, such as 24hours. The countdown time amount may be considered a timing cycleaccording to this disclosure. Thus, removal of tubing 66 having tag 142from packaging 144 and reading tag 142 by reader 140 is another eventthat begins a timer according to this disclosure. In some embodiments,the reading of tag 142 by reader 144 is also a triggering event formonitoring handwashing compliance as described above.

The discussion above regarding the use of a timer and acountdown-to-removal protocol of the catheter 66 is equally applicableto the embodiment depicted in FIG. 4. Accordingly, a countdown time isdisplayed on GUI 70 of bed 11 and/or on a display screen of pendant 148and/or on a display of room station 18 in some embodiments. An alertmessage is also displayed on one or more of these devices 18, 70, 148 atthe end of the countdown time in some embodiments and/or at apredetermined time prior to the end of the countdown time. Alternativelyor additionally, an alert message regarding the end of the countdowntime being reached or regarding the end of the countdown time beingreached in the near future is communicated to one or more caregivers,such as being communicated to a wireless communication device carried bythe caregiver(s), in some embodiments. Bed 11 and/or room station 18automatically initiates a nurse call to nurse call server 14 at the endof the countdown timer or a predetermined amount of time prior to theend of the countdown timer in some embodiments.

In some embodiments, a caregiver enters on GUI 70, room station 18, orpendant controller 148, a countdown time of their choosing which may begreater than or less than the 24 hour default countdown time.Alternatively or additionally, the caregiver is able to use one or moreof devices 18, 70, 148 to enter other times at which the catheter is tobe checked prior to countdown-to-removal time expiration (e.g., checkingevery 6 hours or every 8 hours, just to name a couple possibleexamples). Thus, the caregiver is able to enter pre-determined timelimits and to be notified by the system of FIG. 4 as to when thecatheter should be checked, changed or removed. The notification is madevia the nurse call system 14 in some embodiments.

The times entered by the caregiver for catheter removal, orautomatically determined by one or more of the computer devices 14, 18,68, 148 of the system of FIG. 4 or some other computer device of network12, is based on the type of catheter being used, the type of patientwith which the catheter is being used, or both. For example, indwellingcatheters may need to be changed more frequently than external (e.g.,condom) catheters or less frequently than short term or intermittentcatheters. Catheters may need to be changed more frequently for childrenthan for adults or more frequently when the patient has undergonebladder surgery rather than knee surgery, just to name a couple ofexamples. The type of catheter is able to be determined based on thecatheter ID read by reader 140 from tag 142 and the type of patient isable to be determined based on patient ID read by reader 140 orotherwise stored in RTLS server and/or nurse call server 14 and/or someother server of the associated system.

In some embodiments, the systems contemplated herein include areceptacle that couples to the catheter tube 66 to receive liquid (e.g.,urine) from the catheter tube. The receptacle has its own receptacleRFID tag in some embodiments. The RFID reader 140 reads the receptacleRFID tag such that a time-stamp is created in response to the receptaclebeing attached to or detached from the catheter tube 66. Thus, thereceptacle is contained within metallic foil packaging similar topackaging 144 so that its receptacle RFID tag is not read until thereceptacle has been removed from its packaging. The reading of thereceptacle ID by reader 140 is considered a triggering event forhandwashing compliance according to some embodiments of this disclosure,the assumption being that the caregiver attaching a new receptacle isdoing so in connection with removing an older receptacle containingliquid. Such a receptacle replacement operation is sometimes a source ofcontamination or potential infection due to accidental spillage.

In some embodiments, the timer in the systems disclosed herein accountfor time that the catheter tube 66 was in use with a patient prior tothe RFID reader 140 of the patient bed 11 reading the RFID tag 142. Forexample, the catheter tube 66 may have been inserted into a patientduring surgery and a time of insertion may be stored in the patient'selectronic medical record (EMR) of the EMR system or server 32. Thetimer accounts for the time the catheter tube 66 was in use prior to theRFID reader 140 reading the RFID tag 142 based on information receivedfrom the EMR system 32 or from some other computer device coupled tonetwork 12. Accordingly, the countdown time is reduced by the amount oftime the catheter tube 66 was in previous use.

The description above regarding protocol compliance associated with useof catheter monitor 60 (e.g., handwashing protocol compliance, infectionprotocol compliance, countdown to removal protocol, etc.) or theprotocol compliance associated with the use of catheter 66 having tag142 is applicable to other medical devices, equipment, and kits as well.Generally speaking, this disclosure contemplates that system 10 of FIGS.1-4 automatically begins monitoring for protocol compliance upon aphysical activity associated with the process governed by that protocol.

Many medical procedures create risks (e.g., infection, incompatibility,improper use), and care institutions have implemented protocolsreflecting best practices in performing the procedure. Unfortunately,caregivers may not comply with these protocols in any specific instance,for a number of reasons (including ignorance of the protocol, inadequatetraining, and perceived lack of value in protocol). Institutions mayseek to monitor for compliance with these protocols, either to alert ofan unsafe condition, to track overall compliance rates, or to performroot cause analysis.

A key challenge in monitoring for protocol compliance is recognizingthat the activity governed by that protocol is taking place. Accordingto this disclosure, it is recognized that there is often a physical actthat is part of the activity governed by the protocol. For example, forthe protocol associated with placing a central line (e.g., anintravenous line such as a peripherally inserted central catheter (PICC)line), the first (or at least significant) physical act is opening thecentral line kit. Opening the kit triggers a signal from a transmitterof the kit to a receiver of system 10 which results in monitoring forprotocol compliance by one or more of servers 14, 20, 32, 42, 50 or therelated devices 16, 18, 19, 22, 34, 52. In the description that follows,these are simply referred to as system 10.

Once the system 10 recognizes that an activity governed by a protocol istaking pace, the system 10 begins to monitor for the specific activitiesand conditions that are required by the protocol for inserting a centralline are followed (both prior to and after that act of opening thecentral line kit). For example, there are specific protocols associatedwith the insertion of a central line (Central Line Bundle)—one sampleprotocols includes (1) compliance with hand hygiene protocols, includingboth physical hand washing and use of disinfectants, (2) use offull-coverage barriers (including wearing sterile gloves, gown, andmask, and draping patient with sterile sheet, (3) use of chlorhexidineas an antiseptic. A more exhaustive summary of central line protocolscan be found at jointcommission.org/assets/1/18/CLABSI_Monograph.pdf.

The system 10 communicates the protocol activities to the caregiver atthe point of care (e.g., nurse call, text message, display on nurse callor other GUI, or display in dynamic room signage). In some embodiments,the system 10 uses a variety of sensing methods (e.g., passive RF,active RF, access controls, hand hygiene compliance monitoring, RTLS,visual monitoring) to determine whether the protocols are being followed(e.g., to detect that chlorhexidine is present in the room, that asterile draping has been taken from the supply unit).

Examples of protocols monitored by system 10 according to thisdisclosure include the following: insertion of a PICC line (protocolcompliance monitoring initiated on opening PICC line kit); insertion ofFoley catheter (protocol compliance monitoring initiated on openingFoley catheter kit); use of a ventilator (Ventilator AssociatedPneumonia (“VAP”) bundle triggered by presence of ventilator in roomand/or opening disposable vent tube); and protocols related to theperformance of a medical procedure, where a physical component isnecessary to the performance of that procedure.

Addition of a communications mechanism (e.g., transmitter) to a physicalcomponent, in which communication to the system 10 is initiated by useof the component is contemplated by this disclosure. In someembodiments, the component has one or more of the followingcharacteristics: it is a single-use device or consumable, it is onlyused in performance of the activity governed by the protocol, and it isused early enough in the activity governed by the protocol formonitoring to take place prior to the creation of an unsafe condition.

In addition to receiving transmissions from a component triggered by itsuse (e.g., opening of a kit), system 10 monitors for performance ofactivities or existence of conditions required by the protocol for thatprocedure such as for example: sensing of caregiver identity andreference to system describing caregiver characteristics, to confirmthat the caregiver has the required training (e.g., caregiver is RN,caregiver has received infection control training) and has not beenexposed to situations incompatible with that procedure (e.g., presencein ward where MRSA is being treated within past 72 hours); sensing ofpresence of required materials (e.g., RF antenna recognizes that sterilegown and antiseptics are present); and sensing of patient condition(e.g., vitals monitoring confirms that blood pressure is within rangefor procedure to be performed). Thus, enhanced patient safety throughavoidance of errors caused by failure to comply with one or moreprotocols is the aim of system 10 according to some embodimentscontemplated herein.

Although certain illustrative embodiments have been described in detailabove, variations and modifications exist within the scope and spirit ofthis disclosure as described and as defined in the following claims.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A method comprising coupling a cathetermonitor to a first barrier of a frame of a patient bed, coupling apatient care device to a second barrier of the frame of the patient bed,operating bed control circuitry of the patient bed to control at leastone function of the patient bed, operating the catheter monitor so thatfirst circuitry of the catheter monitor communicates with the bedcontrol circuitry, and operating the patient care device so that secondcircuitry of the patient care device communicates with the bed controlcircuitry.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein coupling the cathetermonitor to the first barrier comprises placing at least a portion of thecatheter monitor in a first cavity of the first barrier.
 3. The methodof claim 2, wherein coupling the patient care device to the secondbarrier comprises placing at least a portion of the patient care devicein a second cavity of the second barrier.
 4. The method of claim 1,wherein the first barrier comprises a first siderail and the secondbarrier comprises a second siderail.
 5. The method of claim 1, whereinthe first barrier comprises a siderail and the second barrier comprisesa footboard.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein the patient care devicecomprises a compression device.
 7. The method of claim 1, wherein thepatient care device comprises a pulse oximeter.
 8. The method of claim1, wherein the patient care device comprises a vital signs monitor. 9.The method of claim 8, wherein the vital signs monitor comprises one ormore of the following: a heart rate monitor, a respiration rate monitor,or a blood pressure monitor.
 10. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising coupling a second patient care device to a third barrier ofthe frame of the patient bed and operating the second patient caredevice so that third circuitry of the second patient care devicecommunicates with the bed control circuitry.
 11. The method of claim 1,further comprising operating a GUI of the patient bed to display bedinformation pertaining to the at least one function of the patient bed,to display monitor information pertaining to at least one function ofthe catheter monitor, and to display device information pertaining to atleast one function of the patient care device.
 12. The method of claim1, further comprising operating the bed control circuitry to communicateto a network of a healthcare facility bed information pertaining to theat least one function of the patient bed, monitor information pertainingto at least one function of the catheter monitor, and device informationpertaining to at least one function of the patient care device.
 13. Themethod of claim 1, further comprising operating the bed controlcircuitry to communicate to a network of a healthcare facility bedidentification (ID) data, catheter monitor identification (ID) data, andpatient care device identification (ID) data.
 14. The method of claim13, further comprising operating the bed control circuitry tocommunicate to the network of the healthcare facility patientidentification (ID) data.
 15. A method comprising operating controlcircuitry of a patient support structure to control at least onefunction of the patient support structure, and operating the controlcircuitry to implement a falls prevention protocol in response to asignal from a patient care device indicating at least one of thefollowing: the patient care device being turned on or a tube beingattached to the patient care device.
 16. The method of claim 15,wherein, in connection with operating the control circuitry to implementthe falls prevention protocol, the control circuitry generating an alertto indicate at least one or more of the following: that casters of thepatient support structure are not braked or that at least one siderailof the patient support structure is not in a raised position or that anupper frame of the patient support structure is not in a loweredposition relative to a base frame of the patient support structure. 17.The method of claim 15, wherein, in connection with operating thecontrol circuitry to implement the falls prevention protocol, thecontrol circuitry generating an alert if a patient position monitoringsystem of the patient support structure indicates that the patient hasexited the patient support structure or has moved toward exiting thepatient support structure by a threshold amount.
 18. The method of claim15, further comprising operating the control circuitry to send a nursecall signal to at least one remote nurse call system computer device inresponse to a violation of the falls prevention protocol.
 19. The methodof claim 15, further comprising operating the control circuitry to senddata to at least one remote computer device of an electronic medicalrecords system pertaining to operation of the patient care device orimplementation of the falls prevention protocol or both.
 20. The methodof claim 15, further comprising operating the control circuitry to senddata to at least one computer device that signals an electronic roomsign to display information pertaining to the falls prevention protocol.